Gillyard’s team has found everything from boats to refrigerators left on quiet, out-of-the-way blocks. He said some contractors doing house cleanouts use illegal dumping as a way to cut costs, rather than bringing big items to a facility like Burns.

“They’ll take them to the back blocks and dump and pocket the money that they’re supposed to use for [disposal],” he said.

The voucher program gives would-be dumpers an alternative, said Carlton Williams, director of the city’s Office of Clean and Green Initiatives.

“To provide a voucher to allow someone who may be struggling to pay dump fees to come to a location like Burns is extremely important, because that’s an incentive for them not to throw trash and dumping in our parks and our recreation centers,” Williams said.